www.tjprc.org editor@tjprc.org A SOCIOLOGICAL STUDY OF MASS MEDIA AND ITS ROLE IN CHANGING PUBLIC OPINION KHIZAR HAYAT QAMAR 1 , ASMA ISLAM 2 , MUHAMMAD SHOAIB 3 & MUHAMMAD ZUBAIR 4 1 Lecturer Sociology, University of Sargodha Mandi Bahauddin Campus, Punjab, Pakistan 2 Research Scholar GC University Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan 3 M. Phil Scholar Riphah University Faisalabad, Punjab, Pakistan 4 M. Sc Scholar, Department of Sociology UOS M. B Din Campus, Pakistan ABSTRACT Role of mass media in changing public opinion is a universal phenomenon. It can be easy to influence the public through mass media in all aspects of life, throughout the world and especially in Pakistan. People in Pakistan are illiterate and unaware about issues and media’s positive and negative role in society due to lack of awareness and education. Owner of all types of mass media that operating it and providing news, sports, entertainment, information and many other functions are used the media for their personal benefit and deal it as a business and influencing the people in their desired directions in a negative manner. It is not neglected that media is performing different positive and appreciable role in all sectors of life but due to different propaganda’s and negative factors of society, media’s role is not remarkable, suitable and reliable. People are not aware about these factors and adopt media as a basic source and take help in decision making, religious guidance, politics awareness and many other relevant purposes of daily life. The present study was conducted in District Mandi Bahauddin, Punjab, Pakistan. Offices, streets, markets and open public places were selected for the selection of sample, by using convenient sampling technique in District Mandi Bahauddin. The sample of 120 respondents was taken through convenient sampling. The data were collected by interview schedule and it was analyzed by Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS). The results explored that Media had both positive and negative role on society. Majority of respondents suggested that we should have much more access to Mass Media for performing a better role in all walks of life. There should be proper rules and regulations and organized check and balance regularly on all types of media that supervised them and restrict the negative aspects and enhance the chances for public and media organization to use media in positive manner. Government departments, NGO’s and public should play their role. KEYWORDS: Mass Media, Cultivated Area, Serious Issues, Poverty Received: Jun 11, 2017; Accepted: Jun 26 2017; Published: Jun 30, 2017; Paper Id.: JCMSJUN20172 INTRODUCTION Mass media is a basic source of information, news and campaign etc. Recently role of mass media in reshaping or changing public opinion is an important issue. Everybody gives his own views regarding Role of mass media in changing public opinion but, according to article mass-media-and-its-influence-on-society, its role is explaining in following lines that in the last five decades or so, the exponentially with the advance of technology. Media has both positive and negative impacts on society in shaping the public opinion of the masses and it can form public opinion in different ways, depending of what is the objective just as Pakistani media changed the Original Article Journal of Communication and Media Studies (JCMS) ISSN (P): 2278-4934; ISSN (E): 2278-4942 Vol.6, Issue 1 Jun 2017, 11-16 © TJPRC Pvt. Ltd.